Iconic photos document human tide of vast changes
NEW YORK -- Sidney D. Gamble portrayed the human face of China at the start of a turbulent revolution in his spellbinding photos of everyday life: rickshaw drivers on a Beijing thoroughfare, rowers on the Yangtze River, boys lining up at a soup kitchen, a wrinkled shoemaker dressed in rags, a cherubic infant in a lucky tiger suit.

'Five by Tenn" reduced to 'Four by Tenn'
NEW YORK -- "Five by Tenn," five one-act plays by Tennessee Williams, was one of the opening attractions in the Kennedy Center's summer-long celebration of the playwright.

New exhibition focuses on creation of 'La Grande Jatte'
CHICAGO -- Plunk down about 40 people, three dogs and one monkey on an island in the Seine just outside Paris on a sun-drenched afternoon. Put them in stiff poses. If your name is Georges-Pierre Seurat and you have some novel ideas about light and color, the results are going to be most striking.

Museum acquires bronze Apollo sculpture
CLEVELAND -- A sculpture of mythology's Apollo went on display Tuesday at the Cleveland Museum of Art, which hopes to prove the acquisition is the only one among about 20 large Greek bronzes in the world that can be linked to the ancient Greek masters.

Odds and Ends
CLEVELAND -- An edgy new advertising campaign to promote organ donation hints that police officers should cut speeders who are organ donors some slack.

Winds uproot tent at wedding, killing one
ISLE LA MOTTE, Vt. -- A sudden gust of wind uprooted a tent at a wedding moments after the couple recited their vows, killing one guest and injuring more than a dozen others.

Thomas making mark with swings
BALTIMORE - It didn't take Bobby Cox long to see why Charles Thomas was leading the International League with a .358 batting average when he was called up last Wednesday.

Braves' comeback stuns Orioles
BALTIMORE - Yes, the Braves need another bat or two. But it's not just other teams that can deliver big hits. Just ask the gang of hitters the Braves sent to the plate in the eighth inning Sunday afternoon.

Braves drench Marlins
ATLANTA -- John Thomson won for the first time in nearly a month and J.D. Drew homered to help the Atlanta Braves beat the Florida Marlins 6-1 on Monday night in a game delayed almost 3 1/2 hours by rain.

Stirring up a stink
CHINO, Calif. - Regulators trying to clean Southern California's infamously unhealthy air have long targeted factories and old buses. Now they're setting their sights on a different breed of offender - dairy cows.

Middlemen popping up to sell people's wares on eBay
ATLANTA -- Yes, people go to eBay simply to buy and sell stuff to each other. But as the Internet auction site becomes increasingly popular, it's attracting a fast-growing crowd of businesses who want to be part of the process.

Severance compensation is large for departing CEOs
NEW YORK -- A deal is a deal, unless it's a severance agreement for a departing top executive. Then the terms are subject to a last-minute reinterpretation which can make parting a sweet sorrow for the executive and simply sorrowful for shareholders.

Tex-Mex chain growing fast
ATLANTA -- Its name is based on a Three Stooges character. The menu is filled with references to "Seinfeld" and other TV shows. And employees are required to greet every customer with a shout of "Welcome to Moe's!"

Consumer spending rises by 1 percent in May
WASHINGTON -- Consumers - the lifeblood of the economy - boosted their spending in May by the largest amount in more than two years, an encouraging sign for the recovery's strength.

Chat it up before you tee it up
Charlie Timmerman (left) a veterinarian in Aiken, talks with former Clemson football standout Michael Dean Perry before the start of the West End Zone fund-raising golf tournament at the River Golf Club in North Augusta.

Surprise transfer
Transferring sovereignty to Iraqis' interim government two days early won't necessarily stop, or even curb, an escalation of killings and destruction by the terrorist insurgents, but it was a smart tactical move nonetheless. It robbed the violence of all its propaganda value.

Toward swifter justice
Like most states, South Carolina is spending a good part of its Big Tobacco settlement on programs that are neither anti-smoking nor medical in nature.

Water rules overdone
One of the advantages of living in Richmond or Columbia counties is that their problems with drought sometimes aren't as severe as many other Georgia counties. That seems to be true for now, too.

Safe exception to the rule
Georgia's new rule designed to stop the odious practice of social promotions requires third graders to pass a test to prove they can read well enough to be promoted to the fourth grade.

People in the News
NEW YORK -- "Fahrenheit 9/11" filmmaker Michael Moore called the opening weekend numbers for his documentary "mind-boggling" and credited his political opponents for boosting ticket sales.

People in the News
NEW YORK (AP)- Moby, Dick and a Lunachick celebrated a rite of summer in Brooklyn's annual Mermaid Parade, joining about 1,500 people who marched along the Coney Island boardwalk, many in nautical dress.

Wal-Mart lowers forecast for June sales growth
BENTONVILLE, Ark. -- Wal-Mart Stores Inc. lowered its forecast Monday for June sales growth at stores open at least a year to a range of 2 percent to 4 percent, citing cool weather and disappointing Father's Day results.

Stocks sink in afternoon trading
NEW YORK -- Economic uncertainty overshadowed a peaceful and early transfer of power in Iraq Monday, cutting off a rally and leaving stocks modestly lower while investors fretted about the Federal Reserve's imminent decision on interest rates.

Pitcher gets late call to team
Jarrett Gardner led the South Atlantic League in ERA. He led it in wins. He even earned a win with Double-A Portland in a two-classification jump for a spot start June 9.

Garren prevails in sudden death
THOMSON - In one of his infrequent tournament appearances, Augusta's Crane Garren outplayed the better-known Regions Cup stars in his group Sunday to win the Camellia Classic at Belle Meade Country Club.

Sowards takes Club Pro title by one stroke
NASHPORT, Ohio -- Bob Sowards made up eight shots on the front side as leader Jeff Coston unraveled, coasting to a one-stroke victory Sunday in the 37th PGA Club Professional Championship.

Haas family shares lead in charity event
BARRINGTON, R.I. -- The father-and-son team of Jay and Bill Haas eagled the eighth hole and shot an 11-under 60 in best ball play Monday to share the lead halfway through the CVS Charity Classic.

Stadler wins Nationwide tournament in playoff
FINDLEY LAKE, N.Y. -- Kevin Stadler tapped in for par on the fourth playoff hole Sunday, winning the Nationwide Tour's Lake Erie Charity Classic on the same day his father won on the Champions Tour.

Thrashers acquire goalie, take six more draft picks
ATLANTA -- After focusing on defense on the first day of the NHL draft, the Atlanta Thrashers traded for a goaltender and then focused on adding front line help in the last six rounds of the draft Sunday.

Disability benefits denial is very unfair
Allow me to tell you my true story about my discriminatory and unequal representation that I have received from U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.
Timothy M. Bledsoe
North Augusta, S.C.

Union card checks not a threat
In reference to your editorial June 21 ("End union bullying"): "Card checks" have been in existence since 1995 and perhaps longer. It is a system whereby the employer can choose to recognize the union if 50 percent plus one of the employees sign a card requesting they be recognized by the union. There is no rule or mandate issued by the National Labor Relations Act that specifies that the employer must recognize the union. The employer has the option to grant bargaining rights to the union, or it may elect to call for an election.
William H. Wells
Lincolnton

Bush's Iraq lies are mind-boggling
On June 16, the bipartisan Sept. 11 Commission voiced unanimously that they found no connection between the attacks of Sept. 11 and Saddam Hussein or Iraq, nor did they find evidence that al-Qaida and Iraq had any working relationship. As part of the basis for their conclusion, the commission described a meeting in Sudan in the mid-1990s attended by Osama bin Laden and some Iraqis, at which bin Laden asked the Iraqis for help with training camps and in other ways, but nothing came of it.
Victor Reilly
Aiken, S.C.

Slate of officials is most qualified
I am writing to support Sheryl Jolly. Mrs. Jolly is the only truly qualified person to be elected to the superior court system for Burke, Columbia and Richmond counties. She graduated from Mercer University, she has worked in the district attorney's office and she has been the head prosecuting solicitor in Richmond County for years. She knows the law. She is a fair and open-minded woman, and knows how a courtroom is supposed to be run. We need someone with her experience in office, and we need a woman judge. It's high time we recognize that a woman can fill that job and do a fantastic job at it. I would love to see her on the bench. She most definitely has my vote.
Marlo Cramer
Waynesboro

Media hubs bridge gap between PC, living room
You've got hours of home movies, thousands of songs and countless digital pictures on the PC in the den. But the best places for watching and listening - the big television and stereo - are in the living room at the other end of the house.

Kids love capes
It's a rite of passage. At some point in most children's lives, their dismayed parents will discover that their lovely lad or lass has draped one of the good towels across their shoulders, dug out an old pair of swim goggles and proceeded to save the world, one haphazard leap off the couch at a time.

Classic video games make a comeback
RALEIGH, N.C. -- When Rob O'Hara needs a serious video game fix, he unwinds a black rubber joystick and plays a few rounds of "Space Invaders" on his Atari 2600, vintage 1982.

Internet is extremists' channel of choice
NEW YORK -- Al-Qaida-linked terror groups and their sympathizers have in recent months made a big splash on the Internet, making it their communications channel of choice.

International space mission reaches Saturn this week
PASADENA, Calif. -- Two decades and $3.3 billion in the making, an international exploration of Saturn begins this week when a spacecraft slips through a gap in the planet's shimmering rings and arcs into orbit.

Astronauts will venture back out Wednesday
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The two astronauts on the international space station will venture back outside on a risky spacewalk Wednesday to replace a fried circuit breaker, after an attempt last week had to be aborted because of spacesuit trouble.

Online postings carry hidden clues
NEW YORK -- With basic tools and skills, Internet sleuths can learn much from Web sites and online discussion boards beyond what terror groups and their sympathizers may be saying in the open.

Meet and greet
Meet and greetU.S. Rep. Charles Norwood (R-Augusta) is greeted by Millie Schumacher, the chairwoman of marketing, and Brian Muherin, the chairman of disaster relief for the Augusta chapter of the American Red Cross. The congressman spoke Monday at the Augusta Red Cross Media Appreciation Luncheon, which was held at Red Cross headquarters on Ellis Street.

Runner-up gets back to college
Erin Lindsay blends in Monday with the other students in the classroom at the Medical College of Georgia as instructor Beth Peters talks to them about cluing in to the mental status of their patients - for instance, if the patient has an obvious disability and refuses to recognize it.

South Carolina losing money in unpaid car tax bills
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- South Carolina counties could be losing millions of dollars in revenue because most do not bother to track down those who don't pay their car tax bills, relying mostly on tickets issued by law enforcement to catch delinquent taxpayers.

Rants and Raves
THIS RANT IS for County Commissioner Steve Brown's comments regarding speed bumps in our neighborhoods. Mr. Brown, you say, and I quote, "Enforce the law. Hire more deputies or make them go out there." Did you count and put a price on how much hiring more deputies would cost? I'm pretty sure it would be more than the speed bumps. You say speed bumps are not going to affect speeding problems. That is the most ignorant statement I've heard in a long time. How did you become a commissioner in the first place? If you help write the county budget, I might have to move to Richmond County.

The week ahead
I don't play tennis. In fact, I've made the attempt only a few ill-fated times, and for periods just long enough to remember why I've never gone racket shopping. Tennis, sadly, falls into that category of sports I was destined never to play. I'm an awkward soul with little (or no) hand-eye coordination, and so should I feel the tennis jones beginning to take me, the safest thing for all involved is for me to pick up a television remote.

High tuition threatens prepayment program
COLUMBIA - Marsha Fisher, of Greenville, was eager to plunk hard-earned money into a state program that promised her children's college tuition would be covered even if the costs rose.

School overcame poor surroundings
BRUNSWICK, Ga. - Their journey was long, their textbooks dog-eared and their classrooms spartan. But black students had no excuse for not learning at Risley High School.

Mountains of mail
When it comes to marketing and publication materials, James Franklin Strother knows the business well.

Rants and Raves
THIS RANT IS for County Commissioner Steve Brown's comments regarding speed bumps in our neighborhoods. Mr. Brown, you say, and I quote, "Enforce the law. Hire more deputies or make them go out there." Did you count and put a price on how much hiring more deputies would cost? I'm pretty sure it would be more than the speed bumps. You say speed bumps are not going to affect speeding problems. That is the most ignorant statement I've heard in a long time. How did you become a commissioner in the first place? If you help write the county budget, I might have to move to Richmond County.

Across the area
Police arrested a 22-year-old Augusta man Sunday in connection with a morning shooting, according to officials.

Across South Carolina
COLUMBIA - One winning ticket for Saturday's $65.8 million Powerball drawing was sold in South Carolina, lottery officials said Sunday.

Burns lead to charges
An Augusta mother accused of waiting 16 hours to seek treatment for her infant's many burns was worried social workers would take her children, authorities said.

Kid of the day
Today's kid of the day is Weldon Dean Bailey, 2, of North Augusta.

Monument will recognize Thurmond's daughter
COLUMBIA - Gov. Mark Sanford has signed legislation to add Essie Mae Washington Williams' name to the Strom Thurmond monument, recognizing her as a daughter of the one-time segregationist.

Graham works for SRS cash
AIKEN - Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., promised Monday to mount a campaign of gentle persuasion and arm-twisting to restore money slashed from four major programs counted on to breathe new life and jobs into Savannah River Site.

DFCS inquiry nears its end
An investigation into allegations that practices at the Richmond County Department of Family and Children Services endanger children is expected to be completed soon.

State hires private company to help improve Allendale schools
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- The South Carolina Education Department has hired a private company to help improve Allendale schools, where many students continue to fail tests in math and reading despite the state's takeover of the district nearly four years ago.

Questions threaten nominees to boards
A squabble among a group of state legislators has some members questioning whether several recent appointments to Augusta boards and authorities are legitimate.

Rants and raves
I'M CALLING DUE TO the rant that was in the paper Saturday, June 26. I agree with the person who wrote in about neighbors not keeping their yards up. I've got neighbors who have been in my neighborhood less than a year. They have a boat in the front yard, a refrigerator and stove on the car porch, and the grass is going to be higher than the house before the summer is over.

Rants and raves
I'M CALLING DUE TO the rant that was in the paper Saturday, June 26. I agree with the person who wrote in about neighbors not keeping their yards up. I've got neighbors who have been in my neighborhood less than a year. They have a boat in the front yard, a refrigerator and stove on the car porch, and the grass is going to be higher than the house before the summer is over.

First single by 'Idol' finalist Diana DeGarmo to be released
ATLANTA -- Now comes a real thrill for the pride of Snellville. "American Idol" finalist Diana DeGarmo's first single, "Dreams," will be released Tuesday by RCA Records, and the 17-year-old singer says she's excited to hear it played on the radio.

Observers to keep eye on safety workers
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Track observers at Daytona International Speedway will have more direct communication with safety workers on track beginning with next weekend's Pepsi 400.

Gordon cool after hot win
SONOMA, Calif. - The only problem Jeff Gordon had during Sunday's Dodge/Save Mart 350 at the Infineon Raceway was a breakdown with his in-car cooling system.

Bhardwaj, 25, not giving up Olympic quest
ANAHEIM, Calif. - At 25, Mohini Bhardwaj should have long ago hung up the leotard. Clearly, though, she had different thoughts about a sport that spits most girls out while they're still in their teens.

United States wins women's water polo tourney
LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Jackie Frank made two saves in a penalty shootout to help give the United States a 12-10 victory over Hungary on Sunday night in the championship match of the FINA Women's World League Super Final.

25-year-old not done in Olympic quest
ANAHEIM, Calif. -- At 25, Mohini Bhardwaj should have long ago hung up the leotard. Clearly, though, she had different thoughts about a sport that spits most girls out while they're still in their teens.

Judge orders arrest of Rison
ATLANTA -- An arrest warrant has been issued for former NFL receiver Andre Rison, who owes $184,787 in two states for overdue child support payments, attorney's fees and interest.

TV journalists cross the line on book promotion
LOS ANGELES -- This column comes with a valuable reader bonus: It's not hawking a book we've written or a book written by a colleague, a former colleague, someone we hung out with in high school or our dentist.

TV Lookout: highlights (and lowlights) for the week
Billing itself as American television's only series of international documentaries, "Wide Angle" is returning for its third season and promises to give special attention to stories from the Islamic world. This week it certainly makes good on that pledge.

In surprise move, U.S. transfers sovereignty to Iraqi government
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- The U.S.-led coalition transferred sovereignty to an interim Iraqi government two days early Monday in a surprise move that apparently caught insurgents off guard, averting a feared campaign of attacks to sabotage the historic step toward self-rule.

Audio best
Weekly charts for the nation's best-selling recorded music as they appear in Billboard magazine. Platinum signifies more than 1 million copies sold; gold signifies more than 500,000 copies sold:

Graduation at school made event all the more special
The grimace on my face was evident this past fall at the release of the Richmond County School District's "graduate in your stadium" plan. It astonished me that after four years of hard work and dedication our reward would be to graduate outside ... in May ... with a suit ... and a gown ... and a cap.

It's mean to tell friend that boy she's dating is one you wanted
THIS WEEK'S QUESTION: My friend knew I wanted to get with her godbrother but instead she hooked him up with another of my friends. It really hurt me that she did this to me. Should I talk to my friend and tell her that I liked the boy she is going with or not?